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Congressman John Garamendi’s Statement on the Defeat of H.R. 2, the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018

May 18, 2018

Press Release

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman John Garamendi (D-Fairfield, Davis, Yuba City, CA) issued the following statement on the defeat of H.R. 2, the Agriculture and Nutrition Act of 2018—commonly known as the farm bill:

“Agriculture is crucial to my district, so you’d better believe that a farm bill would have to be really bad for me to vote no. This one is: even 30 Republicans voted no and the bill failed on a 198-213 vote. Sadly, the bill creates an untested, burdensome, expensive bureaucracy for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (food stamps) – I believe federal funding for SNAP should go towards feeding people, not bureaucracy. It includes drastic new policies that could force millions to go hungry. It does nothing to help our farmers deal with the consequences of President Trump’s trade wars, which have already reduced California agricultural exports to China. The bill also dismantles a recent bipartisan law to fund wildfire fighting and preventative forest management thus making our forests more resilient to wildfire – an issue I have worked on for years.”

“I am hopeful that the defeat of this bill will be a lesson to the Republican leadership that a bipartisan approach to critical legislation is the best way to create good policy and achieve the successful passage of a bill. If a bipartisan approach is used, I am confident that a farm bill will be enacted into law that helps 3rd District farmers and ranchers and provide essential food to those in need.”

Garamendi opposed all amendments that attacked the safety net for farmers and those in need of food. The final bill failed, 198-213.